Reuters: Trump temporarily suspends refugee admissions and visas for Syrian and Iranian citizens
Congressional aides and immigration experts say President Donald Trump is expected to issue several "executive orders" on Wednesday that would temporarily restrict visas for citizens of Syria and six other Middle Eastern and African countries, including Iran.
Reuters was the first news agency to report on Tuesday night, February 25, that Mr. Trump would issue these executive orders on Wednesday.
According to the Washington Post, Iran is among the countries whose citizens will face restrictions on immigration and obtaining visas to enter the United States.
An hour after the Reuters report, Mr. Trump tweeted that Wednesday would be a “big day” for US national security. The news agency said that the United States is expected to suspend refugee admissions and visas for citizens of Syria, Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen for several months.
The Washington Post also confirmed in a report on Tuesday that Mr. Trump's decisions will be announced after a meeting with Department of Homeland Security staff on Wednesday.
Visa restrictions for Iranian citizens again
If Trump issues an executive order to restrict visas for Middle Eastern countries, including Iran, this will be the first time that Iranian citizens will face such restrictions.
In January of last year, the US Congress passed a law requiring citizens of 38 mainly European countries to obtain a visa to enter the US if they have traveled to Iran and countries designated as “sponsors of terrorism” in the past five years. On the other hand, citizens of these countries who also had Iranian citizenship must obtain a visa, whereas before this law, they were able to travel to the US without a visa simply by holding citizenship of a country such as the UK.
Previously, during the presidency of George W. Bush and after the terrorist attacks of September 11, he introduced Iran as an axis of evil alongside Syria, Iraq, North Korea, and Sudan, and after that, strict visa and immigration restrictions were imposed on Iranians for a long time.
Previously, during the Jimmy Carter administration and after the hostage-taking of American diplomats in Tehran, the visa and immigration process for many Iranians was delayed.
Concerns about the entry of "terrorists"
If Mr. Trump orders it, the entry of refugees from other countries into some American cities, called "refugee bases," will be stopped.
Republicans have long opposed the Obama administration's decision to allow refugees, especially from countries like Syria, but Mr. Obama and Democrats, by defending the United States' immigration policy, have allowed tens of thousands of Syrians into the country in recent months.
During the election campaign, and after the terrorist attacks in Europe that were claimed by ISIS, Donald Trump announced that Muslims should be temporarily banned from entering the United States. After criticism from Muslim groups, he said that he was not anti-Muslim, but that his plan was to prevent terrorists from entering the United States.
The Obama administration opposed this policy and announced that every refugee would be screened and investigated by security and intelligence agencies before entering the United States.
Source: Voice of America
